Worst Case Scenario

Written by T. J. Newman, Worst Case Scenario (2024) is a thriller that follows a small community at the center of a national crisis. When a commercial airliner strikes a nuclear power plant in Waketa, Minnesota, the town races against the clock to avoid a deadly chain reaction that would affect millions of people across the United States. The novel follows several ordinary people—schoolteachers, firefighters, plant workers, engineers, and others—who work together to deal with the aftermath of the crash, evacuate the town, and work through multiple crises at the nuclear plant. Worst Case Scenario explores themes of Heroism and Leadership in Times of Crisis, Community Strength and Resilience, and the internal dilemma of Navigating the Temptation to Ignore Trauma.

Newman is an international best-selling author whose previous two novels, Falling (2021) and Drowning: The Rescue of Flight 1421 (2023), are currently in the process of being adapted into major films. Her three novels to date are thrillers that focus on the airline industry and are heavily influenced by her past work as an airline attendant. Her writing has been praised for its fast pace and high tension, and several publications list her work among the best thrillers of the year.

This guide refers to the 2024 first hardcover edition published by Little, Brown and Company.

Content Warning: The source text and this guide contain descriptions of a plane crash, a car crash, death, and miscarriage.

Plot Summary

Aboard Costal Airways Flight 235, the pilot has a heart attack and slumps forward over the controls, sending the plane into a nosedive. The plane crashes into the small town of Waketa, Minnesota. Falling debris devastates the town, causes a pileup on the highway, and severs the power line at the Clover Hill nuclear power plant.

Steve Tostig, the fire chief at the plant, and Jocelyn “Joss” Vance, a representative for the regional nuclear emergency team, head to the power plant while Ethan Rosen, the plant manager, does his best to assess the damage.

President Michael Dawson is apprised of the emergency in Waketa. The plant has two key problems; they have lost power and are running on generators, and their nuclear waste storage area has been damaged. Specifically, the spent fuel pool is damaged, and the water that keeps the used fuel rods inert is leaking. If the fuel rods are exposed, they will send radioactive material into the air and create an uncontrollable fire. Dawson’s cabinet members confirm that the effects would destroy the United States’ economy, cause mass migration, and irreparably damage the agriculture industry.

Dani Allen and Levon Miller, Waketa firefighters, respond to the crisis at the plant but encounter a van that has been pinned on a bridge by the plane’s wing, leaving five-year-old Connor trapped alone inside. They ignore the fire chief’s orders to get to the plant and instead try to rescue Connor as a fire burns on the wing overhead.

At the plant, Joss and Ethan work with the other engineers to restore power via emergency generators. The spent fuel pool has hydrogen gas collecting inside, and they decide to slowly siphon off the gas to prevent an explosion. However, this causes the release of radioactive material, so they issue an emergency evacuation order for Waketa.

Meanwhile, Levon’s wife, Carla, and Dani’s father, Marion, take Dani’s daughter, Bri, and Steve’s son, Matt, to an old bunker outside the power plant. Marion uses a CB radio to relay evacuation information to the citizens of Waketa. Matt secretly leaves the bunker and flies his drone, but two plant workers take him to Steve, who angrily scolds him.

Steve volunteers to go into the damaged spent fuel pool and weld a sheet of aluminum to its side. Although his mission is successful, he runs out of air and falls unconscious, sinking to the bottom of the pool. His colleagues rescue him, but due to radiation exposure, Steve now has no more than a year to live.

At the bridge, Dani coordinates with locals and manages to get inside the van to reach Connor just as the bridge collapses, sending her and the boy to the bottom of the Mississippi River.

At the plant, Joss uses a Geiger counter to test the radiation of the debris. She discovers that the tail of the plane has been filled with radioactive water. Back in the control room, they discover that the leaking waterline means that the basement—which houses the generators—is also filling with water. If the generators die, the reactors will lose power, overheat, and melt down.

At the bridge, Dani survives at the bottom of the river with Connor thanks to a pocket of air in the van. Firefighters and members of the Coast Guard rescue her and Connor, who are now hypothermic. The two are rushed to a nearby hospital.

Ethan, Joss, Steve, and the other engineers realize that the only way to empty the basement of water and save the generators is to manually turn the wheels inside and open the sluice gates. However, the person who does this will inevitably be killed by the extreme radiation. Steve volunteers for the job and tearfully bids his son goodbye.

Joss walks Steve to the doors to the basement, strategically keeping Ethan from realizing that two people are needed for this job and that she plans to enter the basement with Steve. Ethan discovers her intentions too late to change her mind. In the basement, Steve and Joss wade into the radioactive water and successfully complete their mission, dying soon after. 

One year later, President Dawson presents posthumous Medals of Freedom to Joss and Steve. Then, Connor presents a medal to Dani. Afterward, Matt visits his mother’s grave at the cemetery and goes fishing in his father’s favorite spot to honor him.